


December the 1st.

by TheMusicalCC



Series: No Name Town: Opus (The side chapters) [2]
Category: Toy Story (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, F/M, Holidays, decorating the house, pure fluff, wintry stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:00:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21899320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMusicalCC/pseuds/TheMusicalCC
Summary: The first day of December brings the first big snow of the season to No Name Town. Bo's feeling festive.Set in No Name Town AU (The Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy!verse)
Relationships: Bo Peep/Woody Pride
Series: No Name Town: Opus (The side chapters) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1577524
Comments: 5
Kudos: 22





	December the 1st.

Roberta Pipkins woke on the first day of December to frost covering the glasses of her windows, turning the white landscape surrounding her house into a surreal portrait- one that consisted of blurry shapes of white and gray contrasting against the pale blue of an early morning sky. She yawned, got out fo bed, threw on a jacket over her pajamas and her snow boots on her socked feet and went downstairs.

“Morning, ladies.” she called as she passed the trio of snoring, fluffy bodies strewn over her sofa and went to throw another log on the fireplace before walking to the door and stepping outside, hugging herself as the still and cool air of the morning enveloped her. The sky was mostly clean after the snow and the sun was starting to turn the icy fields around her into a blinding sight. Somewhere, seeds were already dreaming of spring under the earth. She shivered, delighted. Summer was her season, honestly, but winter, _oh_ , winter had it's own dangerous charm. Winter made her blood sing a tune that may have been completely different, but was still loud and clear. If she could have worn winter on her hair or rode on it's back with the wind roaring in her ears, she would have. 

“You’re gonna catch your death out here.” came a voice she knew well from the road.

“So you’ve told me hundreds of times and I’ve yet to so much as catch a cold, Gran.” she said, turning to greet the old woman approaching, wrapped in an elegant shawl on top of a thick coat. “Who drove you here?”

“Please. These old legs have yet to fail me, even in the snow.” Demetria turned her eyes to where Bo had been looking, lips pursed pensively. “Are you worried about your crops?”

“I know better than to.”

“Good. No grand-daughter of mine is afraid of a little ice.” she wrapped Bo in a warm, tight hug and kissed her on the cheek. Even in winter she managed to smell like grass “First big snowfall of the season, hm?"

"Yes!" Bo's tone was dripping with 'Isn't it _great'_ and Demetria smiled fondly. More at her than the snow, Bo thought. Half of the time, she had no idea what was going on in her Gran's mind, but she was familiar with that soft smile she'd been seeing since infancy.

"A beautiful one too. You must be excited." Demetria sighed dejectedly "My one worry is that you’ll try and put up those ridiculous lights of yours on your own in this snow and fall down.”

“Come on, that was _one time_ _!_ " Bo protested "And, I happen to like them.”

“I know. You’re like a moth. Hell, you'd probably have them up all year if you could.”

“ _Technically_ , I can-”

“Don’t even think about it.” Bo laughed and Demetria hummed, amused despite herself “It's much too early for them too, don't you think?"

"They're too much work to just stay on for a couple of days, Gran."

"Hm" Demetria eyed the fields one last time and Bo wondered if she was thinking about absences. Or rather, absentees. "Now, are you going to ask me in for breakfast or not?”

* * *

Demetria left around noon and half-reluctantly. Only because Bo was itching to get to work and she knew if she stayed she’ll end up bossing her and sparking arguments. Bo offered to drive her home, thinking about getting another string of christmas lights from Potemkin while she was in town but Demetria once more reassured her that her legs had yet to fail her. _Besides,_ she added, _you know how much I enjoy the walks in the snow._

Instead, Bo did the things that needed to be done around the house. She made her bed, left in a mess after her hurried morning escapade. She cleaned around while her laundry was getting done and then hanged her clothes outside- despite the snow, the sun was radiant and there was a faint breeze. She ate her lunch sitting on the den’s windowsill, enjoying the view and had to convince herself that doing the dishes now was the best course of action, reluctant to dip her hands in the cold tap water but also aware that otherwise they’d just keep piling up. By the time she was done, the sun was already declining, so she dived into the boxes stored away at the attic, lining the ones containing lights near the entrance so she could bring them down one by one. Billy, Goat and Gruff uneasily kept eyes on her slowly stepped down, her back to the ladder to avoid accidents and placed the boxes, one by one, on the hallway carpet, having barely stopped to catch her breath when the doorbell rang.

Woody’s nose and cheeks were a bit pink when she opened the door to him. He clearly should have been wearing a scarf rather than a bandana.

“Hey there!” Bo greeted, letting him in immediately “Not that I’m not glad to see you, but what are you doing here?” 

“Demetria came by the ranch a while ago.” he said, as she helped him out of his thickest jacket, and then blowing on his hands to warm them up. His gloves looked like they’d seen better days- She’d have to get him a pair for christmas. The girls came baaing softly as a greeting and he sunk hands in their wool, probably thankful for the warmth. She pulled him further inside, closer to the fire, after placing the jacket on a hook by the door “Uh, she said you needed help with decorating?”

“And you left work for that?”

“She seemed anxious about you falling off a roof or something” Bo scoffed incredulous at that. It was _one time!_ “So I did my best to finish early to come help.”

“Aren’t you sweet?” she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek and saw him squirm in delight- there was something amazing in how Woody never did seem to get used to her casual affection despite the fact that it had been months since they started dating. It made her giddy.

“So- uh, you haven’t gotten started without me, have you?” he asked.

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Good. Where do I start?”

“You can start by getting yourself a cup of coffee from the kitchen while I get you proper snow gear.” he stared, silently questioning just how necessary that was and she scoffed lightly again, playfully shoving him “Go on! I’ll be back in a moment.”

He reluctantly obeyed, mostly because the girls were softly tapping the backs of his legs with their heads, insisting he did as he was told, and in the meantime Bo went upstairs to grab two sets of scarves, gloves and earmuffs. She doubted he’d concede to leaving his hat, even in the snow, so she got only one snow hat for herself before heading back down.

“You really don’t have to worry so much about this-” he said, a bit embarrassed, even as his hands curled around the mug, eager for the warmth “I’ve worked on snow before with what I’m wearing and it’s been fine.”

“Humor me.” she half-shrugged, letting him know how relentless she was gonna be about this by wrapping the scarf around his neck herself. She didn’t feel like explaining to him that the kind of snow day he’d probably seen further south didn’t compare to how cold No Name could get when it put it’s mind to it, not when she was sure he’d realize at his own pace- hopefully, before losing a couple of limbs to frostbite. He pretended to roll his eyes, smiling too much for it to be genuine and just for that she pretended to strangle him with the scarf for a moment, much to his amusement, before putting her hat and mittens on and wrapping her own scarf around her neck “I’m gonna go get my laundry, you finish that and get ready.”

“Yes ma’am.”

Maybe because the light was already tinged mauve, but she was grateful when Woody came out of the house, geared and ready to go, in half the time she had expected him to. He helped with the laundry basket and then asked what her next orders were. When she indicated that unless they put up the outdoor lights before it got too dark they’d probably have to spend another day at it, he rushed in for one of the boxes labeled as ‘ _Outdoors_ ’. As the girls watched them curiously through the windows, Bo held the ladder and handed the tools to Woody as he set a string going from one extreme to the other outlining the first floor windows and going over her door. He then went to the second floor and hanged the shorter, meteor-type ones outside, on top of those windows. When they tried them, letting the girls out to share their success, it was dark enough to appreciate the sight. Bo felt some air punched out of her by it and was tempted to say something cheesy like how no matter how many times she saw christmas lights, they never failed to make her breathless and excited. The way the girls happily bleated at the sight, though, seemed to say it all.

“Would you like some on the roof too?” Woody asked, wrapping arms around her from behind. She drank in on the sight for a moment, humming. Her house had a gentle, limpid glow to it, and though it was less decoration than she usually did, it felt right. Demetria might have called her a moth, but she felt like a flower instead. Yearning to turn her face to the light.

“No, that’s enough.” she turned to place a kiss on his jaw “Thank you, honey.”

“You don’t do christmas trees, huh?” he asked and she shook her head. Christmas wasn't really her thing “Jessie and I kind of got into an argument over the ranch’s tree the other night. She wants the fluffiest, thickest one we can get- I keep telling her tall, skinny trees look better.”

Her laughter floated in a pale cloud before her.

“I see your point. I have a thing for tall and skinny too.” he did that little choked sound he usually kept for whenever she was being unsubtle and it sparked another chuckle from her as she all but leaned back into him, content. “Specially when they’re as gallant as you are.”

They all went inside and he helped her place more lights over the fireplace and a couple of ornaments around the living room- small things she put up more out of genuine enjoyment of their sight than tradition. There was a flashy, expensive-looking glass ornament shaped like a snowflake that sent rainbow reflections around when it caught the light, which they hanged near the entrance. There was a _nochebuena_ -patterned mantle that she placed on the coffee table. Billy, Goat and Gruff conceded to letting them place reindeer antlers on them, however briefly, before going for their beds and laying down with backs turned to them, making their indignation clear. 

And, there was _that_ . A musical snow globe that displayed the image of three figures holding hands in the middle of the miniature snowfall. Two adults and a child in the middle. Woody barely even looked at that before winding it, just enough to hear it play a few keys of a slow, melancholic rendition of ‘ _Have yourself a merry little christmas._ ’. Bo saw his eyes squint at it for a moment, before widening, setting on her and then the little girl in the snow globe. Whatever conclusion he drew from that, it mortified him visibly. 

“It’s kinda sad.” he muttered, trying too hard not to be awkward for it to be any good, and then added, louder “The song, I mean. Uh, I don’t think I’d ever heard it on a music box.”

“It’s unusual, yeah.” It’s all she conceded to, taking the snow globe from him gently, almost reverently. She ran a hand over the glass, pleased to find it impeccable, and then the base, carefully tracing the smooth, pale blue ceramic, fingers slowly making their way to the key on the side and winding it. The song resumed - _...les away. Once again as in olden days…-_ as she shook the globe a bit and then placed it in the middle, on top of the fireplace and gazed at it as the snow fell around the trio, immersing herself in the melancholy of it all for a moment. Sentimental foolishness, really, but she couldn’t help it. Around it’s third lap, the song begun to slow down - _Someday soon we all will be together, if the fates...-_ and she sighed as the last tinkling note faded. Someday soon. 

“So, uh- is there anything else we need setting up?” Woody asked when she turned to him, the house back in almost-complete silence with the snow globe’s song silenced.

“Well....” she pretended to ponder it, looking over her shoulder at him. Dear, kind Woody looking at her with concern and a clear wish to do anything to cheer her up. Her heart warmed at the sight “...the table. After all your hard work, the least I can do is treat you to dinner, cowboy.” he smiled at that, comfortable again.

“Aw... you don’t have to cook for me, Bo.”

“Can’t a girl pamper a cowboy every now and then?”

“Tell you what.” he grunted, getting to his feet “I’ll get started on some tomato soup and you can do the grilled cheese sandwiches. Deal?”

Really, he made her positively melt sometimes. 

“Deal.” she said, mostly just so that he’d go into the kitchen- she had just remembered one particular thing she’d gotten the previous year, mostly just to mess with Buzz and Jessie at the ranch, and never really placed in the house. She even knew what box it surely was in, and on top of everything else there, being the newest addition. Woody, unsuspecting, turned his back on her to go to the kitchen as she went to dip hands into the unused ornaments, rushing behind him just seconds after he got into the kitchen with one arm craned over her head as she got near enough to feel the warmth of his body, not quite touching.

“Oh, and- Woody?”

“Yeah?” he turned, processed the fact that she was very, _very_ close and then setting eyes on what she was holding. She saw him squint, a hesitant smile on his face, adam’s apple bobbing up and down for a moment “Oh- say, is that-?”

“ _Uh-huh_.” The plastic mistletoe hit the kitchen floor and Bo all but pounced him, pulling him for a string of quick kisses all over his flustered, smiling face, giggling giddily.

**Author's Note:**

> (We weren't really planning on making a side chapter for every holiday but here we are.)
> 
> Wrote this both because I wanted to write something wintry and cute and because coolbluerays and I are in the midst of a VERY heavy part of the future chapters' writing, so I needed something lighter.
> 
> Happy holidays!


End file.
